Is 'Westworld' season 2 going to mimic 'Futureworld'? Theories after the season 1 finale

Westworld showed its hand in its intense 90-minute season finale, one which provided answers to a few long-held fan theories and opened up exciting new possibilities for the show, and the Hosts that comprise it. Ford is — assuming he hasn't stowed away a Host version of himself, though that's always a possibility — dead, and Dolores began a brutal massacre of the Delos Incorporated board members who were at the unveiling of his new narrative.

It's not looking good for the Delos board with other Hosts surrounding them, weapons in hand, once the credits rolled. But while we don't know the extent of what this means for the show's second season, which should come out in early 2018, the HBO series' source material offers a glimpse at where itcould head. If you thought Westworld season one was meta, season two could take a few pages from the original movie's mind-bending sequel, Futureworld.

Seriously, just look at the movie's poster.

While the sequel wasn't well received, Futureworld had an absurd and entertaining conceit: Robots had replaced prominent human figures across the world, and the journalists that were to cover the re-opening of Delos' theme parks after the disaster of the original Westworld were to be murdered and replaced by Host replicas, who would then give the parks a stellar review (Delos didn't succeed). They ultimately survived to break the story — probably worth a Pulitzer, right? — that Delos was planning a robotic takeover of the human race.

Incidentally, it looks like the Delos board will be slaughtered at the hands of the Hosts in HBO's Westworld, and that would have huge implications if nobody returned from the park. What the show could do, for season two and beyond, is explore the world outside of Delos with programmed Hosts replacing humans on the corporation's board.

It's possible that was Maeve's intention; as the finale revealed, she was programmed to rebel and escape the park. And she almost did, before backtracking in the final moments to find her Host daughter in one of the other mystery parks. But the fact that she was that close — and that Charlotte wanted to sneak a Host out of the park with important data with Lee's help, and the end result of that is unclear — suggests that we'll eventually see some Host characters escape.

While Futureworld's robotic takeover seemed to be machinated by Delos itself, Westworld's version could be from the Hosts, thanks to Ford. If the Hosts succeed — unlike in the film — it could be more than a symbolic uprising. It could be the dawn of a new race on Earth; one that doesn't age, and ultimately, gains sentience.